


Kylo Ren, The Rising Star

by awkward_radar_tech



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Cooking Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Gift Giving, Modern AU, Night Terrors, ben personally, kylo professionally
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-29
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-25 02:40:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22008610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awkward_radar_tech/pseuds/awkward_radar_tech
Summary: You are Kylo Ren’s personal assistant. The rising star doesn’t know how to cope with his sudden popularity. You let him take sanctuary in your apartment, and help him return to who he was before, Ben Solo.
Relationships: Ben Solo/Reader, Ben Solo/You, Kylo Ren/Reader, Kylo Ren/You
Comments: 2
Kudos: 54





	1. The Ben-ginning

**Author's Note:**

> I’m stating this now, no romantic relationship blooms in this. But, the seeds are planted. And I will write more where the relationship does grow, if requested.
> 
> Prompt, from an anon on tumblr: But I got an idea, how about worn out actor Kylo Ren aka Ben Solo has been doing to much lately he doesn’t even know what time zone he’s in sometimes. Reader is average Joe lucky enough to be his PA in his new film. With the stress of everything and fans following him everywhere Ben hides out at your house, were he sleeps all day in your bed and you feed him lots of food, cos you like to cook?

You didn’t know what you were getting into when you applied to be an assistant for a local movie shoot. But being the new personal assistant to the biggest rising star was not it at all. And you weren’t always local like you expected. Being Kylo Ren’s PA meant you had to go with him on his other press tours during breaks in shooting. Caffeinated anything had become your friend, and today was one where you were dependant. You had jumped across every American time zone in a day and a half, and now you had crossed the Atlantic, only to turn around in twelve hours and fly home.

You checked your watch and went to knock on Kylo’s dressing room door, “Twenty minutes until you’re on, sir. Do you need anything else?”

He opened the door, still in the t shirt and jeans he wore on the plane, “I just have one question, where are we?” 

You looked at him, concerned, “We are in London, sir. You’re doing an interview for ‘the rom-com’ right now. Your suit should be hanging up for you.”

He yawned, “I told you to call me Kylo, not sir. And it is there. Could you step in real quick?”

You nodded and waited for him to step aside, following him inside, “Sorry, Kylo. So used to using sir. Now, what do you need?” 

He closed the door and sat on the couch, “First, no need to apologize. Second, can I have a caffeine pill?”

You pulled out a packet from your bag and handed it to him, “You can hold onto these. But, uhh, Kylo, you didn’t need to ask me in here for that. Nobody cares how you stay awake.”

He hummed, “Thank you, (y/n),” he quickly took a pill, “and that isn’t why I asked you in here. I have an unconventional request, that nobody can know about.”

“Yes?”

“This movie, people are going crazy over it. They have surrounded my building at home, waiting for my return apparently. It is exhausting having to go through all these people, some have even found ways inside my building and to my door. I need a break. Could I stay at your place? I’ll sleep on the couch.”

“Kylo, sir, I live in a run down apartment. You wouldn’t want to stay there. And my couch is only a bit longer than this one, you wouldn’t sleep very well.“

"I’d much rather stay there than possibly anger fans. Please, think about it.”

You gave him a pointed look and checked your watch, “Fifteen minutes, Kylo. Now get changed.”

You left the room, closing the door. Kylo was, but also wasn’t, your boss, and he was asking to stay at your place? He had bodyguards, couldn’t they tell the fans to leave? No, he cared too much about his fans’ feelings to have them told to leave. Maybe you would let him stay. Once back he was off for a week, so he wouldn’t have to leave. It would be fun to hang out with somebody for once, even if it was the person you worked for.

The interview went well, and before long you were being taken to a hotel for the night. 

You followed Kylo outside to the car and he looked at you once inside, “Woah… It is already night?”

You nodded, “Yeah, it is almost eight. I think we are here for like ten hours then we head home to rest for a week.”

As you pulled up at the hotel, there were clearly a bunch of fans waiting for him, and you heard a muttered “shit.”

You looked at him, “When we get home, you can stay at my place, okay?”

He smiled wide for once in his life, “Thank you, so much, (y/n). I’ll give you a bonus.”

You shook your head, “We’ll talk about it later. I don’t want any extra money. Think of it as a kind gesture from a friend.”

The door was opened and Kylo was escorted into the building. You stayed in until the car parked before grabbing your own stuff and going up to your room; there were shrieks from girls, obviously he decided to stop and talk. You went up to your room and got ready for a bit of sleep. 

As you washed your face you heard your phone ringing in the other room. When you went out to check it, you read it was Kylo calling, so quickly answered it.

“How can I help you, Kylo?”

“What time do I have to be ready by? Need to set my alarm.”

“Six. Hopefully the crazies won’t be awake then.”

He groaned, “Hopefully. Thank you. Goodnight, (y/n).”

“Goodnight, Kylo. Text me in the morning so I know you’re awake please.”

He hummed in acknowledgement and hung up. 

In the morning he clearly hadn’t slept much, or well, he was a living zombie in a somehow oversized sweatshirt, clutching to a cup of coffee.

He looked at you in the hallway, “Oh, I forgot to ask if you wanted a cup. Security brought it up to me. They said everybody left at like 2 am, so the coast is clear.”

You gave him a warm smile, “It is alright, Kylo. I’m fine. Let’s head down to the car then.”

You thankfully got to the airport and onto the plane without incident, people have better things to do between 6 and 7 am on a Tuesday apparently. Landing back in Los Angeles was a different story, people don’t care that it is noon on a Tuesday. 

Kylo still looked exhausted, and you hoped nobody followed you. As the car pulled up to the studio you knew you would be safe. You showed Kylo to your car and got in to drive to your apartment.

He looked at you as you pulled out of your spot, “Hey, thank you so much. I appreciate it, more than you might think.”

You nodded, “You’re welcome, Kylo. Do you want to listen to some music?”

“Sure. Listen to what you normally do.”

You turned on your radio, the bluetooth connecting and automatically playing your playlist. You tapped along to the songs on your steering wheel as you drove. After twenty minutes you pulled up to your run down building and parked in your spot.

You turned to Kylo, “No crazy fans it seems. That is good.”

He hummed, “Yeah. But there are still people around that could recognize me.”

“If they ask if you’re Kylo Ren just tell them no and give a fake name. I don’t talk with my neighbors so they don’t know what I do. And none of my friends know who I work for.”

He nodded and prepared himself to step out. He messed up his hair so it wasn’t as perfect as his normal style, put on the hood of his sweatshirt and stepped out, slinging his duffle bag over his shoulder.

You stepped out and got your bag from your trunk. You looked over at him awkwardly looming next to the car, “Let’s go, sir.”

He followed you like a lost puppy, and then you heard the voice of your annoying neighbor from the floor below yours, “Hey, 32! Is that Kylo Ren?”

You turned to her voice, “No. This is my friend.”

She acted like you were lying, “You sure?”

He stepped in, “Uh, yeah. I’m Ben. But I get that a lot. It is a bit tiresome.”

You tried to pull him away and walk inside, but she wouldn’t relent, why did she have to be out? And why did she care? She has always been vocal about despising everything about Hollywood, especially celebrities.

“Do you have ID to prove it?”

Kylo stopped and you turned, “Ben, don’t pay her any mind, let’s go get some lunch.”

He didn’t move when you pulled, “No, she wants proof I’m not stupid Kylo Ren, I’ll prove it,” he pulled out his ID and showed it to her, “See? Benjamin Solo. Now, can me and my friend go have some lunch? I’m rather hungry and I have a short fuse when I haven’t eaten.”

She just walked away after reading his ID. He looked to you and you just walked in, taking the elevator up and getting him in your apartment.

You threw down your bag as soon as you closed your door, “I’m so damn sorry Kylo. She is so annoying, and thinks she can know anything she wants. She isn’t even on this floor, she is in 21. But, uhh? You aren’t really Kylo Ren?”

He sat on your couch, “Well, I am now. I legally changed my name last year when people started recognizing me, but I still have my old ID, which I had just renewed a few months before I changed my name.”

You nodded, not wanting to pry further, “Alright then. Can I get you anything to drink?”

“Can I get some water please?”

You went and dropped your stuff in your room then got him a glass of water.

You sat on the floor after you gave him the cup, “TV? Food?”

“Watch whatever you want, (y/n).”

You turned on Netflix and turned on the show you were currently binging, then your belly grumbled, “I’m going to go fix some lunch, any requests?”

He looked at you hopefully, “Tacos?”

You thought for a moment and nodded, “Yes, I have everything to make tacos.”

You left the show on, you could rewatch the episode later, and went in to cook. You cooked some carne asada you had prepared for this week, some rice and beans, then prepared all the toppings you needed. Assembling Kylo’s tacos were easy, he liked his tacos almost plain, just meat on the tortilla with some fresh pico de gallo. When everything was finished you fixed each of you a plate of your preferred tacos with some rice and beans then brought the plates to the living room. 

“Here you go, Kylo. Just as you like it.”

He took the offered plate and began to eat, “Did you make all of this right now? This is amazing.”

You nodded, “I did most of it. I had the carne asada marinating to fix this week, and the salsa I just made. The beans and rice are pre-packaged, but I try to make them myself too, when I have the time. And the tortillas I buy fresh from a neighbor.”

He hummed, “Well this is all delicious. Thank you so much.”

You smiled and ate your meal. When you finished you took your plate into wash along with all the items you cooked with once you stored the leftover food.

After a moment Kylo sheepishly walked in with his plate, “Excuse me, (y/n)? Is there anymore?”

You turned to look at him, “Yeah! I just put it away in the fridge. Help yourself.”

Kylo took out the containers and fixed himself more tacos, then stood at the counter to eat them while talking with you. “Where did you learn to cook like that?”

“Mostly self taught. I had to learn how to stretch my food budget when I moved out. Cooking from bulk purchases helps. So I had to learn how to use the same ingredients in as many ways as possible so I wouldn’t get bored.”

He handed you his now empty plate, “Can you be my personal chef _and_ my PA?”

You laughed, “You don’t want to see me 24/7 Kylo.”

He walked out of the kitchen, “Maybe I do.”

You just shook your head and finished washing everything. When you walked back into your living room, Kylo was passed out on your couch. He looked so uncomfortable, he was almost bigger than the old thing. You went to your room, changed all your bedding, then hid all the embarrassing things you had out. 

You gently woke up Kylo once you finished, “Hey, go sleep in my bed. It is a lot more comfortable than this small thing.”

He groaned and stretched, voice heavy with sleep, “No. That is your bed. You sleep in it. I’m fine here.”

You crossed your arms, “No. Kylo. You are sleeping in my bed. I don’t need to sleep right now anyways. You do. You’ve been working so hard recently. Go sleep in a damn bed.”

He stood up and pat your head, clearly still mostly asleep, “Whatever you say, my dear. Goodnight.”

Your cheeks burned and you just shook your head as you watched him shuffle into your room and unceremoniously flop face first onto your bed, snoring within moments. You went and shut the door most of the way, but first you placed his bags in plain sight in case he woke up and wanted to change out of his jeans. 

You worked around your apartment, not letting the fact you had an unplanned guest keep you from your planned chores. You swept and dusted, set your bedding on to wash, the one nice thing about this apartment, you had a washer and dryer in your unit. While the wash was on you sat down and restarted your show and went through your social media. One of your friends shared a tabloid article theorizing that Kylo Ren is in a secret relationship since he has yet to return home after landing earlier today and has spent a lot less time interacting with fans these past few months. 

You mumbled to yourself, “He’s staying away from you pricks. You’ve exhausted the poor man.”

You continued perusing, finding nothing else of interest, then paused your show before moving everything to the dryer. You continued watching until it was time to make dinner, pasta is what you had planned for tonight, so you doubled everything to have enough for Kylo.

As you were cooking you heard Kylo enter the kitchen, “Good evening, sleeping beauty. Are you hungry?”

Kylo was still a bit groggy, but rapidly waking up, “Yeah. The smells woke me up. What are you making?”

He sat at your kitchen table and you brought him a glass of orange juice, his favorite, “Pasta. Specifically homemade cheese tortellini with meat sauce. And garlic bread.”

He took a sip and hummed, “You make pasta?”

You nodded, “Only filled pasta, it is cheaper that way. And I made the sauce and garlic bread. Including the bread. But I freeze a lot of stuff so I didn’t actually make any of it tonight.”

He held up his glass, “And this juice?”

You laughed, “That is store bought. I can’t make it as well.”

“You’re lying. I’m sure you can.”

You hummed, “Yeah. I can. But only when oranges are in season.”

You turned back and began to stir the sauce and added the pasta to the now boiling water. You pulled out the garlic bread and shut off the flame for the sauce. After a few minutes you drained the pasta and added a bit of the water to the sauce, then added most of the sauce to the drained pasta.

“Alright, food is ready Kylo. Come help yourself.”

“It smells amazing.”

You handed him a plate and he served himself then sat back at the table. You followed suit and served yourself, then sat across from him. 

You shared pleasant conversation, taking turns asking about the other’s life. While you worked for him, and were around him more often than not, neither of you knew much about the other, but this time together would change that. 

When he finished he looked up and smiled at you, “Now for a more personal question, if you want to answer it. Are you dating anyone?”

You smiled back and chuckled, “So asking about my parents and childhood isn’t personal, but asking if I’m dating is?” You paused to take a sip, “No, Kylo. I’m not. Haven’t dated in awhile. What about you then? There is a tabloid article out there theorizing you’re in a secret relationship since you haven’t come home yet and aren’t interacting as much with fans.”

He groaned and covered his face, “No. I’m not. Same as you, haven’t in awhile.” He rubbed his face and looked at you again, “And you know that tabloid is wrong. I’m here with you.”

“But what about the fan interactions? Just the burn out?”

He nodded, “Yeah. I’ve really just wanted to go to bed recently, or get into work. They’re great and all, but I don’t want to be on at 7 am or 9 pm, especially if I just came from a different timezone.”

“I can’t even imagine. But you don’t have to be on at all this week. Stay here for as much of that time as you want. Be Benjamin Solo again, if only for me.”

His eyes lit up, “Yes. Call me Ben. Please. Only my mom and dad call me that anymore. I need to be Ben for a week. I’ll order some plain clothes online to be delivered here too. I’m going to be Ben Solo again.”

You nodded, “Okay, Ben. Let me clean up, and you can work on ordering everything you need. Then tell me when you’re checking out and I’ll fill out my address.”

He stood up and grabbed both plates, “Let me help you please.”

“Alright. You can help me Ben.”

He grinned and had a tiny celebration, “Yes! Thank you.”

He set to work filling up the sink with water, placing the plates and utensils in the sink, then turning to you, “Uhh, the leftovers need to be put away. Where are your containers?”

You moved to the right cabinet, “This one, Ben. But I’ll put it away. You focus on washing.”

He nodded, “Okay, (y/n).”

You put away the food and Ben grabbed each empty piece and cleaned it. Once the food was put away you sat up on your counter.

You looked to Ben, who was meticulously scrubbing the saucepan, “I had no problem cleaning up, Ky… I mean Ben. I do it all the time.”

He turned to you, “I’m your unplanned guest. I want to do has much as possible to help and not throw off your schedule and routine. I’m sure you have one here too.”

You looked away, feeling your cheeks warm a bit, “Well I do. But I’m fine doing it all myself.”

He pointed a stern finger at you, but his face held a small smile, “No. I’m washing the dishes. Go relax. Put on a movie. Pour yourself some wine if you want, and have any. I’ll be out in a bit.”

You just nodded and listened, going to turn on some super cheesy rom-com your friend told you to watch. After a while you heard the sink draining and footsteps coming back out. 

Ben plopped down on the couch right next to you and outstretched his arms across the back, then groaned, “Really, (y/n)? You like rom-coms too?”

You paused it, “Shit, sorry. Wasn’t thinking. I just think that they are funny, especially the real cheesy ones. And one can dream about randomly falling in love with a stranger. But I’ll change it to something else.”

Ben shook his head, “No, you can keep watching. I’ll order those clothes.”

You started playing the movie again and he pulled out his phone and wallet to find clothes with rush shipping. After twenty minutes he silently passed his phone to you and you typed in the address information then handed it back. Once the order was placed he put his phone away and again stretched his arms out. You didn’t know if he was actually watching or just zoning out, but you were happy he didn’t mind. 

As the credits rolled, you let out a yawn, “Alright, time for bed for me,” you tapped his thigh, “That means it is time for you to move, Mr. Solo. You’re on my bed.”

He turned to you, “No. I’ll sleep here.”

You grabbed his arm and stood up, “Nope, this is not an option. You are sleeping in my bed,” you began to pull on his arm, “Now come on you big oaf. You are going to sleep in my bed, just like you did earlier.”

He stayed planted in his spot, chuckling, “You’re gonna have to pull harder than that. I’m almost all muscles.”

You pulled harder and then tried to pull both his hands, starting to laugh, “Come on Ben. Go sleep in my damn bed.”

He stood up suddenly and caught you before you fell back, “Fine. Just this once.”

You crossed your arms, “This will be the _second_ time, Ben. You slept before dinner.”

He smirked and walked away, into your room, “That was _Kylo Ren_ , thank you very much. Now, do you need anything from in here before I close the door?”

You ran in, “Yes!”

He chuckled and just sat on your bed, pulling out his pajamas from his duffle bag. You grabbed everything you needed and went out.

You paused in the doorway, turning to Ben before closing the door, “Goodnight, Ben. See you in the morning.”

“Goodnight, (y/n). Thank you again.”

You nodded and closed the door then went to change and grab your bedding from the dryer. After setting everything up you crawled into your cocoon of blankets and pillows on the couch and fell asleep.

You were awoken a couple hours later by the sound of whining and screams, coming from your room. You quickly got up and knocked on the door, “Ben? You okay in there, sir?”

He didn’t respond, just more whimpers, so you opened up the door and walked in to find him asleep but thrashing.

Carefully, you approached him, reaching out to rub his arm, “Ben. Kylo. Wake up, sir. You’re having a nightmare.”

He woke up and clung to you, wrapping his arms around your waist. He was panting, repeating your name, “I’m so sorry. So sorry. For waking you up. Sorry.”

You ran your fingers through his hair, “Ben. It is okay, Ben. I promise.”

He nodded and slowly calmed down, “Okay. Okay. Thank you. Thanks for waking me up. I normally have to fight for much longer to wake up.”

You softly scratched his scalp, “Lay back down. I’ll stay until you’re asleep again.”

He hummed, “Can you keep doing that, and playing with my hair?”

You chuckled, “Sure.”

He moved back to laying normally and you moved to keep petting his head. It didn’t take long for him to get drowsy again, and he began mumbling to you.

His voice was barely audible and clearly full of sleep, “I like this. I like you. Don’t tell though.”

You felt your cheeks warm and continued until his murmurs turned to snores. You got up again and softly kissed his forehead, “Goodnight, Ben Solo. Sweet dreams.”


	2. The Ben-tinuation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One day has elapsed in the week of your sort-of boss, Kylo Ren, staying in your run-down apartment. After another night terror wakes him in the middle of the night, you each learn something new about the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT IS HERE!!! Finally. Sorry it took so long, life is a bitch… This is really fluffy. Mostly. And I have ideas for another part, if anybody wants one. Well, many parts tbh…
> 
> Warning:  
> Kylo/Ben’s night terror is about you getting (probably fatally) injured at your wedding. If you don’t want to read his non-graphic description of it, please skip the section between these emojis:❗❗❗

Wednesday had come and gone without any issue. It was mainly just Ben sleeping, waking up for food or the restroom, then shuffling back to bed. He didn’t have another night terror until the early hours of Thursday morning. You did the same thing as before and went to wake him up.

He wrapped you in his arms and didn’t let go, “That one… that one was bad. Really bad.”

He had told you in his rare waking moments that the terrors were common, and that they usually had something to do with him or his family getting hurt. By this point he knew they weren’t real, but they still bothered him. 

You rubbed his arm, “Ben. I’m here now. Do you want to talk about it?”

He shook his head, “No. Not right now. Still too raw. But stay here, please.”

You hummed, “I will. Do you want me to pet your hair again?”

This time he nodded and moved to lay his head on your lap, “Please. Thank you, (y/n).”

You ran your fingers through his hair and untangled any knots you hit. You hummed some of your favorite songs to him and absentmindedly braided parts of his hair. You had thought he had fallen asleep again until he turned so he could look up at you.

He gave you a shy smile, “Can I talk about it now?”

You gave him a kind and inviting smile back, smoothing loose strands off of his face, “Of course, Ben.”

❗❗❗

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before starting, “This one… this one was about you. And you got really badly injured.”

You nodded and stroked his hair.

He continued, tears welling in his eyes, “Some… somebody attacked you while you were walking down the aisle,” the dam broke and he started to cry, “I don’t know how they got there. It was such a small wedding and we had security. You were hurt so bad. But you woke me before the ambulance arrived, before we found out if you were okay. But based off of previous experience you wouldn’t have been.”

❗❗❗

He reached up and wiped his tears just as you were, so you just rubbed his cheek, “Kylo. Ben. It wasn’t real. We aren’t getting married. We aren’t even dating.”

“But what if we do? What if it is real?”

You hummed, “Ben. Benny. Then we’ll make sure to have so much security. People will have to be on the list, have a ticket scanned, bags checked and metal detectors for everyone, whatever. But for now it is nothing to worry about. Just deep breaths to help calm you down”

He listened to you and took in a few stuttering breaths until he could take a smooth one, “What time is it?”

You turned to the clock on your nightstand, “3:07… AM obviously.”

He groaned, “Alright. Well, I’ve calmed down now, so go back to sleep. You deserve it. Even if I can’t go back to sleep because that one was so bad.”

You looked down at him, “If you’re staying up, I’ll stay up. We can just talk about whatever.”

He nodded, and sat up, moving to the center of the bed and folding his legs, “Can I vent?”

You nodded, “Of course.”

He sighed, “I feel lost. Just so lost. I don’t know what to do with my life outside of work anymore. I mean, I can’t do the things I used to do, not without being hounded. I miss my old life, being Ben. But at the same time I’m so grateful for my success, I’m not dependent on my parents any longer.”

You nodded along, “I can’t really imagine. Like I see a bit of it, obviously. But I don’t go through it. But you’ve been Ben since walking out of my car. And until the end of the week.” You paused for a moment, “Anytime you need to be Ben, just let me know. I’ll let you come over. I’ll give you food.”

Ben smiled at you, “Thank you. I appreciate it,” he looked down sheepishly, “can I get some food now? Just some leftovers, is all.”

You got up and offered him your hand, “Sure. Come on. Let’s have ourselves a late night snack. There are plenty of leftovers.”

He got up and took your hand, “Thank you. I really need to do something nice for you for all of this.”

You stopped in your tracks and turned to him, “No. I’m fine. You don’t need to do a thing.”

He shook his head, “Nope. You are doing so much more than you signed up for. You applied to be an assistant on a movie set, not my personal assistant, flying all over the world with me for promotion things. And now you’re housing and feeding me? Just tell me something you want, that you can’t or won’t get for yourself. Anything at all. I’m sure you want some nice cast iron or something like that to cook on.”

You looked away, “Maybe… I’d love a grill pan, flat top combo that covers two burners. And different cast iron pots and pans. A Dutch oven.”

He smiled, “I knew there was something. Consider them bought.”

You looked to Ben wide eyed, “No, you don’t have to. Don’t waste your money on me.”

He held your chin between his pointer finger and thumb, and gave you a smirk, “It isn’t a waste if you make me food with them. And, besides, I have more money than I know what to do with. The least I could do is use it to buy useful things for someone. Especially a good friend.”

Your cheeks warmed, and you quickly turned away and continued to the kitchen, “A good friend?”

He followed you again, “Yes. Well, I don’t really have friends right now. But you said I could consider us friends. So I do. And you’re my best one. Although my bodyguard Max is a close second, he’s cool, and spots me when I work out.”

You just shook your head and took out all of the leftovers you had and two plates, beginning to serve yourself before speaking again, “Help yourself, Ben.”

He took the other plate and assembled an assortment of all the leftovers. A taco, some pasta, meatloaf, chicken and biscuits, definitely more than a snack. Then he sat down and began to eat everything cold.

You microwaved your food and watched him, “You can warm it up you know.”

He quickly swallowed his mouthful, “I know. But I don’t want to. It is good like this.”

You chuckled, “Alright Ben. Do you want something to drink?”

“Just water is fine. Thank you.”

You got your food and set it down then got each of you water, “Can I ask you a question?”

He looked at you, taking a sip of water before speaking, “Always. Anything. I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”

You smiled, “Why do you always eat so fast? And you take such big bites.”

He hummed, “Well, I have a big mouth, so the bites you take are tiny to me. And I don’t quite know why I eat so fast. I get it from my dad, I think. I just ate like him growing up so I could play with him more.”

You chuckled, “Okay… And all of you is big, Benny. Just look how big your hand is compared to mine.”

You held out your hand so he could see, and he placed his on yours, “Maybe you’re just small?”

You shook your head and moved to hold his hand, “No, you’re definitely just big. Huge even. Every part.”

He smirked, “Maybe it is both? You’re small and I’m gigantic.”

“You are not gigantic. Just big.”

He chuckled, “Have you seen my feet?”

You looked away, grabbing your water, “I have.”

He smiled, “Well, you know what they say about big feet?”

You gave him a surprised look, almost choking on your water, as he took a dramatic pause.

He grinned, “Big shoes. And I have to special order shoes online. So at least my feet are gigantic.”

You laughed and went back to eating. 

He stayed silent for a bit then spoke again, “My turn for a question.”

You looked up to him, “Of course.”

He looked away then turned back, “You didn’t completely shoot down the thought of my terror. You even said if. Why?”

It was your turn to look away, face warming quickly, “Because. I, uhh… well. You see.”

He cut off your stammering, speaking fast, “I like you. A lot. Like I have a crush on you. It isn’t why I asked to stay here though. I just knew I’d actually have a break here.” He stood up and walked away before you could respond, “Sorry, shouldn’t have brought it up. I’ll go back to bed, forget I said anything.”

You lept out of your seat and grabbed his arm, “No! I like you too, I think. Well, I knew who Kylo Ren was before I was hired, didn’t know he’d be working the same movie I applied for. And I thought he was cute. But as soon as I found out I worked for him I pushed those feelings aside in order to be professional.”

He stopped in his tracks and turned to you, “You think I’m cute?”

You nodded, “Yes. And very nice and personable.”

He smiled, “So. You like me?”

You returned his smile, “Yes, I said that already.”

“Can I kiss your cheek?”

“Yes.”

He leaned down to kiss your cheek, right in the center, careful not to be too close to your lips. He went back to his full height, smiling wide.

You just watched him, butterflies rampant inside you, then reached up to cup his cheek. Your voice was soft, “My turn.”

He leaned down enough so you could reach, and hummed when you hugged him tight, hugging back.

You rocked side to side while hugging him, “I like you, Ben Solo.”

He let out a yawn, “I like you, too, (y/n).”

You pat his arm as you pulled out of the hug, “Go back to bed now, Ben. I’ll see you in the morning, and we can talk more.”

He nodded and pat the top of your head, “Goodnight.”

You smiled and watched him go back, pushing the door closed then opening it back up and waving to you, which you returned, “Goodnight Ben.”

He left the door open then went into bed, curling up under the covers. You went back into the kitchen to put everything away, leaving the plates until morning, then went to your nest of blankets on the couch, quickly falling asleep.

In the morning you woke to sounds in the kitchen. You got up, still sleepy, and went to the kitchen. You found Ben reading one of your recipes and trying to find everything he needed. 

Your voice revealed your grogginess, “Ben? What’re you doing?”

He whirled around, having not heard you shuffle up, “I’m, I’m uhh. I’m trying to make you pancakes. I found it in your book and decided to do something for you. But I can’t find the measuring stuff.”

You moved to the drawer he was in front of, “They are here.”

You pulled out what he needed and went back to the couch, still tired, not really registering what was happening. You fell back asleep and woke up some time later to nudging.

You lazily swatted at the hand pushing your shoulder, “Five more minutes.”

Ben chuckled, “I already gave you that. Your pancakes will get cold if you wait any longer.”

You hummed, still nowhere near functioning, “Ooh, I like pancakes.”

Ben pulled on your arm to get you to sit up, “Then get up, (y/n). I made breakfast. And don’t make me carry you.”

You reached out your arms, “Take me away, sir.”

He smirked and picked you up bridal style, “Did you drink after I went back to sleep or something?”

You giggled, “No. Just very sleepy. Trying to regain some of my energy, I guess.”

He set you in the chair and set a plate with pancakes and fruit in front of you, “Alright. But it is time to fully wake up now. I can give you a caffeine pill if you want.”

You took some deep breaths and shook your head, trying to fight your grogginess, “No. I’m good. I’m slowly becoming a normal human again.”

He smiled and handed you a cup of orange juice, “Drink this. Maybe the sugar will help.”

You took a sip and hummed, “Thank you, Benny.”

He blushed at the nickname, despite you having used it before, “You’re welcome.”

You began to eat, “These are good Ben. You did a good job.”

“Thank you. I was following a pretty good recipe.”

You got a confused look on your face, “Did I wake up and pull out the measuring cups and spoons for you?”

He hummed, “Yeah. You did. Then you went back to sleep.”

“Oh, I thought I was dreaming.”

He chuckled, “You were not.”

You nodded and ate, slowly becoming more human. 

After breakfast, with casual silence, the two of you went to the couch to watch something.

You looked at him, “Do you like watching tv and movies? Like ones you aren’t in.”

He nodded, “I do. I prefer more documentary type stuff than pure entertainment. I just know or have seen in person too many people, and I start trying to find ways to emulate other’s techniques in my acting.”

“That makes sense. What do you tend to gravitate towards? Food, history, science, nature?”

“I like science stuff, and food and cooking. Sometimes I’ll do history or nature or animals. I also like home renovation and building shows.”

You turned on a cooking competition show and curled up in the corner of the couch under one of your fuzzy blankets. Ben took another blanket and covered himself, curling up in the opposite corner.

Soon the two of you were rooting for different contestants, yelling at them for making risky decisions, pleading for them to hurry up and plate their food already. 

At the end of the episode the two of you just looked at the other and began to laugh.

You grabbed Ben’s hand, “Are you sure we haven’t been best friends for years?”

He squeezed your hand, “I’m pretty sure. But it feels like we have.”

You paused the next episode as the beginning started to play, “I should go down and check the mail. Your clothes should be here, right?”

He checked his phone, “Yeah. It is saying they’ve actually been delivered now.”

You pulled on a sweatshirt and sandals, grabbed your mailbox key, and looked to Ben, “I’ll be right back.”

He waved and you went down and got the three boxes and one bag. Thankfully all of them had your name on them and nobody was around, so you got back without interacting with anybody else. 

You kicked the door to knock, “Ben, open the door. How much did you order?”

The door opened and he took everything from you, “Sorry. But not everything is for me.”

You walked in and locked the door, “Benjamin. What’s your middle name?”

He looked away, blushing, “The initial is C.”

“Benjamin C. Solo, you did not buy me something.”

“I did. And there are no returns. You are keeping it. Now I just need to figure out which box it is in.”

He began opening boxes, looking for something, and then he found the smaller box in one of the boxes, and held it out to you, “Here. For you.”

You took the box and opened it, to find a nice watch, “Ben. No. I can’t accept this.”

He gave you a pointed look, “You are. I’ve noticed you don’t have one, so I felt you should get one. And I can fix the band size for you. I used to work at a watch shop.”

You took it out of the box and tried it on while he ripped open the bag and tossed something else at you, “Ben!”

He smiled and looked away, “I also got more of your drug of choice. Caffeine pills.”

You sat next to him and he adjusted the band for it to fit your wrist.

He looked to you, kind of bashful, “I hope you don’t mind I got that for you. I was ordering other things from the company and saw it. Like I said, I want to use my money for others. I donate too. A lot. All the food banks and human and animal shelters in the county, here and at home. Also I did order you a grill pan. It will be here on Saturday. But I’ll get that from downstairs.”

You just hugged him, “Thank you Ben. I love it.”

He turned to look at you after you pulled back and you locked eyes. You both smiled at the other, and without thinking you both leaned toward each other. 

Time stopped. 

You smiled and then the lips against yours spread wide too. 

The air filled with mirth. 

Time stopped again. Then again. And another time.

Your hands were in silky hair again, and there were hands in yours. 

Time kept pausing. And you didn’t want it to stop happening. But you needed to breathe.

You pulled back and looked at the culprit of the stoppage of time, smiling like a fool, “I like that.”

The culprit smiled too, “Me too.”

You wrapped your arms around his neck, “How about a bit more?”

It was your turn to stop time.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tumblr, awkward-radar-tech!  
> Thank you for reading! Feel free to comment or message me on Tumblr, I like to know what people think of my fics!


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